


Persona 5: Gaiden

by Chris (fanfictionlover3009), fanfictionlover3009



Category: Persona Series
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:48:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24417652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fanfictionlover3009/pseuds/Chris, https://archiveofourown.org/users/fanfictionlover3009/pseuds/fanfictionlover3009
Summary: Six people from different backgrounds and walks of life experience the weird events that happened in Tokyo. Whether it is by fate or luck, they'll come together to make sense of what they experienced.Persona 5 story told from different perspectives.
Kudos: 1





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This story covers the events on the vanilla Persona released on PS3 and PS4. As such, events exclusive to Persona 5 Royal do not appear here while exclusive characters will make appearances with differing involvement to the story. I'll try to stick to the canon as much as possible as this is a side story of Persona 5.
> 
> This is also my first time posting on AO3 so I'm still getting used to the layout and my comeback after many years of hiatus in writing. Expect the stories to be a little rusty for now.
> 
> Thank you for reading.

“So, do I sit here?”

“Yes. Make yourself comfortable.”

“...”

“...”

“...”

“...”

“So, what do you want to talk about?”

“*sigh* I’m not going to beat around the bush. Answer me, do you know who the Phantom Thieves are?”

“W-what are you saying? There is no way that anyone let alone I knew who the Phantom Thieves are. It is a very mysterious group.”

“I know you’re lying.”

“No, I’m not!”

“Yes, you do. You do that hair twirling when you lie.”

“Oh, sorry.”

“And besides, I have my suspicions on some of them. I just need your statement to confirm it.”

“Why do you want to know about the identities of the Phantom Thieves?”

“Who wouldn’t want to uncover the mystery of the Phantom Thieves? It is one of the sought out answers in today’s society. Them stealing people’s hearts goes beyond any logic and comprehension.”

“And what will you do with the information? Feature it on the school newspaper? I know you want to promote the Newspaper Club but I don’t think this is a good idea.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know them personally. But I know that they are afraid and careful right now. I mean, I don’t fully agree with their methods but I know they’re doing what they think is right. They may be Phantom Thieves but they are still teenagers like us. Leaking their identities would have a great impact on them not just on their lives but how the society views them.”

“...”

“So please, don’t do it.”

“...”

“...”

“Here.”

“Why are you giving me your phone and notebook?”  
“To prove it to you that I am not recording this. This is just between you and me. In truth, I do have my doubts that they are the one behind the recent events. I cannot talk about it freely knowing their reputation nowadays so it is nice to finally have someone to talk to about it.”

“Alright, I believe you. You are my friend, after all.”

“So Ruri-chan, how did you know who the Phantom Thieves are?”

“Well Maho-chan, it might be best to start from the beginning.”


	2. First Day

4/11

It started on the first day of school.

As if to start the day of a downer, it rained that morning. And because of the train incident the day yesterday, I had to get to the school early. Thankfully, I managed to wake up early and had enough time to prepare and make it to Shujin.

After much preparation, I said goodbye to my mother and got my umbrella and went off. The train station was only a small walk from home and when I got there, I was not surprised on the large amount people waiting for the train.

The wait didn’t take long and I was able to take the crowded train. This thing happens often at this time of day so I am used to it.

As soon as the train reached Aoyama-Itchome station, I immediately get off the train along with other people, most of which are Shujin students and staff. After somewhat of a long walk, I finally reached Shujin.

As soon as I enter the building, I saw a cluster of students at the nearby bulletin board. Immediately thinking the class assignments were posted, I went over to check.

“This sucks. We’re not in the same class anymore!”

“Omigosh! We’re still in the same class! Yay!”

“Ah dammit. I’m in that class? Great.”

Voices of students became louder as I approached the board. I could tell the mixed emotions of the students on their assigned rooms. I managed to look over and checked my name and sure enough I was assigned to Class 2-E.

It didn’t take long for us to be escorted to the gym for the school’s opening ceremony. I was seated alongside my classmates which was a mix of the old and new. I was able to pick up the conversations between students. The topics I heard things like class assignments, clubs and hanging out. One topic that caught my interest was about this so called “delinquent” student who transferred here. I wasn’t able to listen a lot before the ceremony began.

It was the same stuff as the last year. The new students were welcomed and we got to hear the same speech from Principal Kobayakawa which I swear was just paraphrased from last year. Diverting my attention away from the speech, I overheard the teachers talking.

“Where is that Sakamoto? Don’t he know today’s the first day?”

“You could say the same to Ms. Kawakami’s new student. She’s currently worrying about it now as we speak.”

“I won’t be surprised if that kid went with Sakamoto to ditch school.”

So they’re talking about Ryuji Sakamoto-kun and that transfer student, huh? I know that Sakamoto-kun was considered a troublemaker after that incident with Mr. Kamoshida which caused the disbandment of the track team. As for the transfer student, whatever they did must be pretty terrible to change schools.

The two teachers stopped talking when the principal finished his speech. Afterwards was the singing of the school anthem and then we were allowed to go to our rooms.

* * *

Student introductions were the standard fare. I know some of my classmates and some knew me so the introduction for me is basically to the new people. Our homeroom teacher, Mr. Ushimaru, revealed to us that Ryuji Sakamoto-kun was part our class. He has this long ramble on the things he did which transitions to him rambling about us and we should have faith the honest and just government system. At this point, I just droned out of it. That old man seems to never shut up.

* * *

Classes went by the usual. It was at the afternoon that Sakamoto-kun finally joined the class, taking the seat next to me. We were seated near the back which is good for him if he wanted to be left alone. Although with that dyed blond hair, I reckon he would stand out more. I tried as I might to not make contact with him, only stealing glances when he’s not looking.

After classes, Sakamoto-kun was the first to leave. He seemed to be in a hurry for something. Well, whatever. I have a tutor coming up so I’m not going to waste time.

* * *

Amane-san was a great tutor. She’s currently studying to become a high school teacher so this thing serves as a training for her.

I have her as my tutor ever since when I was in middle school. She was very smart and understanding. Over the years, sour relationship developed to being friends.

Perhaps I could..

It’s worth the shot.

“Hey Amane-san. Is teaching your first choice in college?” I asked.

“Yes, it is. I realized that I have a knack and interest on teaching others during my high school days that I decided to pursue that as a profession. Why did you ask?”

“Well, I have this problem on what to pursue when I go to college. My parents expect me to become an engineer but…”

“But what?”

“B-but I actually wanted to be a feature writer!”

A momentary silence happened until Amane-san asked.

“And how did you come to that decision?”

“It was the writing assignment during my last year in middle school. We were assigned on writing an essay about any event that had been on the news. I remembered that I chose the topic on the murders on the town of Inaba last 2011 because of the strange way the victims were found. You know, where those victims were hanged on rooftops or places of higher ground. It was really spooky and--”

“Ruri, I think everyone knew the hanging murders of Inaba. You should get back to your point.”

“Oh right, sorry. Anyway, I felt great fascination in writing the essay! All the research and putting together everything felt great. Even though the result didn’t come up great. But after that, every time that there was a writing assignment in class, I took it as a opportunity to develop my skills on writing.”

“So you’re saying you are good now in writing?”

“Well, I did improve but I know I still far from great. I was planning to join the Newspaper Club as suggested by Maho-chan but…”

“But you’re afraid your mother would found out.”

“I just don’t want to disappoint my parents, especially Dad. I made a promise to him that I would be the engineer he dreamt of when he was young. I don’t want to break that.”

“Ruri-chan, things change over time. We learn and experience new things in life that could change our perspective. I’m sure your parents would understand. After all, you’re their daughter.”

“Thanks, Amane-san. I’ll tell them…someday.”

“And when will that someday be?”

“When it’s time.”

RING! RING! RING!

“I should probably answer this.” I said as I took the phone out of my pocket. It was Mom. I answered it.

“Ruri, I’m sorry but can you go buy some groceries on your way home? It might take a while before I leave the university and I probably have no time to buy some. Can you do that for me, honey?”

“Fine, I was about to leave anyways.”

“Thank you, Ruri! I’ll send to you the list of the ones we need. See you tonight!”

The call was then dropped. I proceeded to take my bag.

“Well, it seems I need to buy some groceries.”

“OK. Well, see you next time.”

“Thank you.”

I left the place and went straight to the nearest mart to buy the things we need. After that, I immediately went straight home. It was around 7 that my mother came home. We cooked and had a normal dinner that night.

After that, I helped with the dishes and went straight to my room. I sat on my chair near the study table, opened my bag and look though the school notes. The conversation between me and Amane-san came to mind.

I know I have to tell them about my new dream….

….

….

….

….But I don’t know if I’m ready for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, this took two months to make. I have a job now and that really affected my writing schedule. The last part of Amane-san and Ruri was the one I had to rewrite a bunch of times because I wasn't sure of the story line. But I managed to figure it out finally! I hope you like this one.
> 
> 10/4/2020 Edited the Amane and Ruri conversation to correspond to recent changes on the story.


	3. Beginning of the Norm

4/12

I arrived with wet shoes at the school today. Thankfully, the wetness didn’t reached my socks.

It’s the second day of school and this is where the ordinary begins.

Classes started with our homeroom teacher reminding us of the volleyball rally tomorrow. Immediately mentioning the event had my classmates talking and the name Kamoshida was brought up.

Suguru Kamoshida. He is a former professional athlete and even won on the Olympics at volleyball. Because of this, the school prides itself of having him as the volleyball coach. You would not believe how much Principal Kobayakawa boasts about his achievements everywhere. It's clear that he has this clear favoritism on Mr. Kamoshida.

Students and fellow teachers pass him from time to time, greeting them with that big smile of his. He does give this friendly vibe that people actually like him with some actually joining the Volleyball Club. I once considered joining the club itself last year but I later lost interest.

I chatted with Mr. Kamoshida a few times and he appears to be a nice guy. However, when we talked, I got this weird feeling about him. It's like he's hiding something under that smile.

That aside, from what I heard from the whispers of my classmates, most of them are distraught of having to attend the volleyball rally with complaints like having the match teachers vs. students seem unfair and Mr. Kamoshida gloating on his athletic prowess.

I took a look at Sakamoto-kun and to no surprise was wearing a scowl on his face.

“That bastard..” I heard him murmur. I feel the same too, Sakamoto-kun.

He must’ve noticed me looking at him as he met my eyes and angrily said, “What are you looking at?”

“It’s nothing! I’m sorry.” I said trying to look apologetic.

“Everyone, pipe down. Especially you, Sakamoto-kun. I can hear you from here.” Mr. Ushimaru instructed.

In an instant, everyone quieted down and turned to face him.

“Be reminded that tomorrow’s activity is a required attendance. So, I hope that no tries to be absent because if you do, I can assure you that this will be a stain on your permanent record.” he said.

I hear most of the class groan but the adviser dismissed it and started his lesson.

* * *

The final class finally ended and I exited the classroom among others. As I walked on the hall, I noticed my friend Maho-chan standing at the side writing on her notepad.

“Hey Maho-chan!” I greeted her.

“Ah, Kobayashi-san. Nice to see you here.” she greeted back.

“I take it you are taking notes for an article?”

“Yes, yes I am. I am taking notes about the rumors of the transfer student. Speaking of which, I saw the said transfer student earlier passing by.”

“Really? What does the student look like?”

“First of all, it’s a guy. And he somewhat had this messy dark hair and wears glasses. From what I can perceive of him, he seems to be pretty quiet….”

Maho-chan continued talking while my attention shifted to the view outside the school. From a distance, I saw Sakamoto-san with a male student outside the school gates. I took a closer look and noticed that the male student resembled the transfer student Maho-chan described.

_Is he the transfer student? And what’s he and Sakamoto-san doing outside?_

“Kobayashi-san!”

My line of thought was interrupted with Maho-chan calling my name to get my attention.

“Oh sorry.” I apologized. “I was distracted on what I saw outside school.”

“What do you mean?”

I pointed at the window and said, “I think I saw the transfer student outside with Sakamoto-san.”

“What? Let me see.”

Maho-chan moved closer to the window.

“I don’t see them.”

“What?” I said as I look outside the window again and sure enough I don’t see the transfer student and Sakamoto-san anywhere.

“That’s weird. I saw them outside a moment ago.” I said.

“Maybe they just left. Or maybe you are seeing things.”

“Oh come on! I swear I really saw them!”

“I don’t know. Maybe you’re just tired.”

Maho-chan then looked at her watch. “Oh look at the time! I should probably go back to the clubroom!”

She then searched something in her bag and fished out a key.

“Good. I still remembered.” she muttered as she returns the key in her bag. “Well, I best be on my way.”

“OK, see ya!” I replied.

“Don’t forget what we talked the other day!”

“Don’t worry. Didn’t forget about it.”

As soon as Maho-chan was out of my visibility, I immediately went straight home. My thoughts wandered on the topic that Maho-chan reminded me of.

_An invitation to join the Newspaper Club. I’m still not sure I am ready to accept it._

I shook those thoughts off as I reached the station. Amane-san has night classes on Tuesday and Thursday so she won’t be able to tutor me today. Nevertheless, she left me with some homework to do so I should probably do those when I got home.

* * *

“I’m home.”

As soon as I announced my arrival, I heard footsteps coming to the entrance and soon enough I was greeted by my younger siblings Mai and Kai. They’re fraternal twins and are in second year in middle school. They can be pretty lively but can also be the source of annoyance.

“Welcome home, Big Sis!” they greeted.

“Nice to see you two.” I replied. “Where’s Mom?”

“She went out for a bit to an acquaintance of hers.” Mai answered.

“Yeah. She already instructed us to make dinner.” Kai chimed in.

“Really? That’s great!” I exclaimed. “You needed my help?”

“No need. Me and Kai already figured it out.”

“OK. I’ll be going to my room then. If you two need any help, don’t hesitate to tell me, okay?”

“We will.” they replied in unison.

As the two immediately went back to the kitchen, I went to my room. I tried not to worry too much about them. They’re old enough to do chores around the house and follow a simple recipe correctly.

I changed from my uniform to night clothes as soon as I entered my room. I then did my homework for the day.

I was in the middle of it when Kai called me for dinner. As I got to the dining table, I noticed that Mom already arrived, having sat at her own spot.

I sat down on my spot together with Kai and started eating our dinner.

“Looks like the two did great on the curry.” my mom complimented my siblings.

The meal that my siblings cooked wasn’t bad. I mean, it was the run of the mill curry but the result was edible.

“Really mom?” Mai asked with a big grin on her face.

“Yes. Now I can trust you two whenever I asked you to cook something for dinner.”

“Thanks mom. I was really worried you wouldn’t like it.” Kai said.

“Oh come on, Kai! You know we did everything right! Of course, we did great!” Mai exclaimed. “Say mom, can you teach us another recipe sometime?”

“Of course. If I have the time.” my mom answered.

Mai smiled at that answer.

Afterwards, only the clattering of the utensils on the plate were heard. Mai finished her meal first and not too long followed by Kai.

With me and my mom left on the table, things began to get awkward. Mom decided to break the silence between us when she said, “By the way, I met Amane-san earlier at the station. She asked me on how things are going on with your studies.”

Oh shit. What are the odds of the them two meeting?

“R-really? She really did ask that?” I asked as calmly as I could.

“Yeah, she did. I said that you are doing well. After all, I am certain that you put a lot of effort to become an engineer.” she answered.

“Oh yeah. An engineer. Right.”

“Is something wrong, Ruri?”

Oh shoot. She's maybe on to me.

“No mom, it’s nothing. I’m just being reminded, that’s all.”

I saw Mom smiling at me.

“That’s great. Your father would be proud of you continuing his dream.”

“I know. I am trying to make him proud of me.”

I smiled back at Mom.

“Anyway, I should bring these dishes to the sink and immediately went to my room.”

“Oh right. Don’t worry about washing them. I’ll take care of it.”

“Thanks Mom.”

I did what I said.

At my room, I immediately sat at the chair near my desk and placed my head on the table.

“Aaargh, dammit. What do I do now?” I exclaimed to myself.

I discarded the guilt I felt and focused on my homework. It wasn’t long that I finished and went to bed to sleep.

Or at least tried to sleep. The earlier conversation with Mom still lingered in my mind.

_I know I have to tell her someday. The only question is when._

Sleep finally overtook me not knowing what’s going to happen on the following days.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter took a lot of time to finish as I have to delay finishing this to rewrite Chapter 1. I'll try to post a chapter every month but I can't make any promises.
> 
> 12/5/2020 EDIT: Minor changes to reflect future chapters.


	4. Volleyball Rally

4/13

Volleyball rally started on the afternoon. As reminded by our homeroom teacher, we are required to attend so we have no choice. 

As I enter the changing room, it was already filled with conversation from my schoolmates. Topics were just the typical. Although, I can still bits and pieces of the conversations about the transfer student. 

Looks like the rumors are still going.

I went to my locker where I kept my gym clothes and changed. After that, I spotted Maho-chan already dressed on her gym clothes.

“Hey Maho-chan!” I greeted.

“Oh. It you, Kobayashi-san.” she replied. “Sucks that we have to attend the volleyball rally huh?”

“Yeah. I don’t get why we needed to attend. It’s not even a part of any other classes. It’s almost like the school just want to gloat how great Mr. Kamoshida is at volleyball.”

Just then, we heard a conversation beside us.

“Hey, the transfer student is gonna be in the volleyball rally right?”  
“Yeah, he’s definitely going to be there.”  
“Oh man. We gotta be careful around him.”

“Talks about the infamous Shujin Academy transfer student just keep on coming.” Maho-chan commented. “If it wasn’t for that rumor, these conversations wouldn’t happen.”

“Was the one who spread the rumor been determined?” I asked.

“No one knows. It was anonymously posted after all. The post wasn’t fact checked but people just believed and spread it around.”

Maho-chan then let out a sigh.

“Well whatever, the rumor will die out eventually, as do most trends.”

“I hope so.”

“In the meantime, I think that it’s best that we don’t have any interaction with the transfer student. Last thing we need is another rumor linking us to him.”

Me and Maho-chan eventually made our way to the school gymnasium. We separated as we entered and went to our respective classes.

Mr. Kamoshida made a quick message before the rally started. He said something along the lines of using this event as a way of getting to know each other. I have to admit that I appreciate the intent of this but I can’t help but still see this as the school gloating about him. 

He went on to explain the rules. The rule of the rally was to have 6 representatives from each class to play against the teacher’s team for one round. Of course, with Mr. Kamoshida on the opposing team, beating them would be impossible.

Thankfully, I wasn’t chosen to be the representative. It’s OK, I’m not athletic anyway. I’m just gonna sit here and watch our team lose.

* * *

Our team lost. No surprise there.

And so were the other teams.

The match is currently now between the teachers and Classroom 2-D team. One of the students in the team was Yuuki Mishima. From what I’ve observed, Mishima-kun was a part of the volleyball team and I see him interacting a lot with Mr. Kamoshida. Maybe he’s getting help to improve himself on volleyball. And I can tell he’s working hard, with all the bruises on his body as proof. 

Shifting my attention back to the match, I noticed that Class 2-D was handling the game pretty well. Maybe having Mishima-kun in the team helped them having even a sliver of a chance to wi-

BAM!

Everyone was in shock as we witnessed Mishima-kun got hit with the ball right on his face. That must have hurt a lot. Mr. Kamoshida instructed the other students to Mishima-kun to the infirmary. As soon as Mishima-kun and the other students were outside, the match continued with another student as a replacement.

As the match continued, I was reminded of the incident that just happened. I had this weird feeling that it was…. intentional or something. Of course, it could be because Mishima-kun wasn’t paying attention but surely Mr. Kamoshida could’ve spiked it on a different direction.

My thoughts were interrupted with the screams of my fellow schoolmates cheering on the current student team. 

Heh. Looks like it’s another victory for the teacher team.

* * *

The volleyball rally finally ended with the teacher team dominating all the student teams. I mean, with Mr. Kamoshida on their team, there’s no way they could lose. 

As I exit the gymnasium, I noticed that Maho-chan went out first. Guess I’ll talk to her later. 

I decided to go back to the classroom in the meantime. I went over my desk and gather up my things. As I was doing that, I noticed at the corner of my eye Sakamoto-kun and that transfer student running around outside.

I decided not to entertain the distraction outside and continued packing my things. When I was finished, I decided to go to the changing room to change to my school uniform. As I was outside, I noticed Maho-chan standing not far with a notepad on her hand. I decided to go near and greet her.

“Hey Maho-chan! Doing club work?”

“Yes. I am currently on the lookout for any interesting topics for an article. The club’s photographer is currently looking as well.” she replied. “So, how did the volleyball rally go?”

“The teacher team won every round. No surprise considering who is in it.”

“I’’ll have to write an article about it soon as it is demanded by the school. They really wanted Mr. Kamoshida to be the main focus of the newspaper. Guess having an Olympic champion a part of the faculty is a pretty big deal. Speaking of, Kobayashi-san, how are the classes going?”

“Oh, it’s just the usual. Although our homeroom teacher was a pretty strict one. One time, he actually threw a chalk at one of my classmates who was sleeping on this class.”

“That’s Mr. Ushimaru for you. Always an authoritarian.”

“I know right? Good thing your homeroom teacher wasn’t bad as him”

“Ms, Usami isn’t bad. But she is pretty serious in her teachings that I observed that she doesn’t smile even once.”

“Huh. Perhaps she’s not the type.”

“Yeah.”

Then, a long silence between us happened. Maho-chan decided to break it off by asking.

“Say Kobayashi-san. About joining the Newspaper Club, have you decided yet?”

“Still undecided.”

“Come on, Kobayashi-san. We are supposed to pass the official list of members before the faculty meeting. We needed your decision by next week so we can finalize the list.”

“I’m sorry. Things are just complicated right now.”

“I know. But we cannot plead for an extension. We need your decision by next week.”

Maho-chan then picks up her phone from her pocket and checks it.

“Looks like I have to go back. Remember what I said, Kobayashi-san”

“Yes, Maho-chan.”

And then she left. I continued my way to the changing room with the recent conversation still lingering in my head.

* * *

My tutor lessons with Amane-san and my entire evening went by typically. I could say that this day was pretty ordinary apart from the volleyball rally earlier.

Many thoughts ran through my head as I lay down on my bed. 

The earlier volleyball rally incident. 

That time when I saw the transfer student and Sakamoto-san running around the school.

And the reminder of Maho-chan about the Newspaper Club. 

I let out a sigh.

“The day might be over but I’m still having these thoughts in my head.” I said to myself. “Here’s hoping these would be resolved soon.”

I closed my eyes and allowed myself to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rules of the volleyball rally weren't stated on the game so I just made it up. Thankfully, the made-up rules was the same on what was shown on the anime.
> 
> Writing Chapter 4 has started by the time this was posted.
> 
> 12/6/2020 EDIT: Changes in text alignment.


	5. Peculiar

4/14

So, there was a cat running around the school.

OK, let me start from the beginning. School proceeded as usual with the scheduled classes and everything. In fact, nothing stood out the entire morning and afternoon.

That is, until I saw that cat.

It was a black cat with a yellow collar wrapped around its neck. It meows a lot that it sounds like it’s actually talking. I caught it passing by when I was on my way to the bathroom after school. 

By the way it’s moving its head around, it looks like it’s looking for something. 

As I was about to enter the bathroom, I saw two male students running opposite me. If I could take a guess, those two were Disciplinary Committee members. They’re probably chasing that cat.

After leaving the bathroom, I decided to went back to my classroom and on the way, I noticed some people outside. Much to my surprise, it’s Sakamoto-kun and the transfer student. And the black cat from earlier was with them. And from the looks of it, it’s like they’re talking to it. I know people talk to animals sometimes especially to their pets but based on their body movements, it’s like talking to it like it’s a person.

As much as the oddity I saw intrigues me, I decided to leave it alone and went to my classroom. I don’t want them to think suspiciously on me.

* * *

“Mind telling me why you brought me here?”

It was not too long after I exited the classroom that I ran into Maho-chan. She told me that she needed my help with the report she’s doing. Of course, as her friend, I agreed.

Little did I know that it was about Mr. Kamoshida. 

“Because my other clubmates are currently on their own assignment and are currently unavailable. I have to schedule this interview with him and by the time they came back, my time for him will be over. ” she answered back in same whisper tone when I asked.

Currently, we’re in the P.E. Faculty Room interviewing Mr. Kamoshida for what I think to be a feature article for the school newspaper. We’re not the only people though. Mishima-kun is with us. Although he’s only sitting on side watching our interview. 

Must be waiting some orders from Mr. Kamoshida, I guess.

“Thank you so much for the interview for the school newspaper.” Ruri-chan said.

“No problem. I just want to keep the reputation of the Shujin Academy high.” Mr. Kamoshida said with a big smile on his face. “Say, how about you and I have time for a chat someday? You know, like topics outside the academy. It’ll be fun!”

“I afraid I can’t. I am currently managing several articles. I don’t much time for recreation.”

“Oh well. Such as shame though, you were fun to talk to.” He said and then turn around to me. “And you? From what I’ve heard you’re only helping her right now. So how about you and I go instead?”

Wait, is he asking me out? No offense to him, but I’m not interested.

“I’m sorry sir but I’m busy with my studies as of now. I don’t have time for any recreation.” I replied. 

Actually, I do have time for rest and recreation but I just had to find a way to get out of the conversation.

“I’m sure we can find some wiggle room on your schedule. Treat this as a getting to know you kind of activity between a teacher and a student.”

OK, I think he’s just forcing now. Before I can respond, Mishima-kun thankfully spoke to interrupt him.

“Sir, I think you have a meeting with a student after this.”

Mr. Kamoshida’s face scowled for a bit upon hearing him. He then forced a smile and said, “Oh, that’s right! Thank you for reminding me, Mishima-kun.”

“Well then, if you’ll excuse us. We’ll have to be going.” Maho-chan said.

“It’s sad that our time is up. I enjoyed my interview.” Mr. Kamoshida said in reply.

We get up on our seats and about to open the door when Mr. Kamoshida said to us, “Think about my request though. I’m sure you won’t regret it.”

“We will.” Maho-chan replied.

We walked farther away from the P.E office and when we’re outside the earshot of Mr. Kamoshida, Maho-chan spoke to me.

“That wasn’t the first time he asked me out. Of course, I always try to find an excuse to reject it. And looks like now he had his sights on you.”

“Mr. Kamoshida is a good teacher and all. But I don’t any interests in going out with him.”

“The feeling is mutual.”

We then switched topics as we walked along. Before long, we reached the clubroom.

Maho-chan tried to find the door only to find it locked. She then immediately searched for something in her bag. After a while, she turned to me and said, “This is unusual. It seems that I can’t find the key.”

“Looks like we have to find it.”

“Alright. I’ll go check at the classroom. Kobayashi-san, you check the path we took from the P.E office. I might dropped it without knowing.”

I nodded to her and we split up in search for the key. I made sure that the path I took was the one we took not long ago. 

Despite my best efforts, I haven’t found the key and before I know it, I was nearing the P.E. Office. Thinking that maybe the key was left there, I decided to go inside and ask Mr. Kamoshida about the keys…

Only to be stopped with a loud noise from the inside.

What the hell was that?

Curiosity took over me and I decided to inquire about the noise. As I was about to take the first step, my phone vibrated. I was dead focused on determining the sound that I heard that I decided to ignore it.

I continued to approach the office and phone vibrated again. I ignore it again and when I made my move, guess what?

It vibrated again. And this time it’s longer.

Filled with annoyance I decided to check my phone and found out that Maho-chan was calling me.

“Maho-chan, what is it?” I asked as I answered the phone.

“Kobayashi-san, I found the key. It was under my desk all along.”

“Oh, that’s great! Should I still come to the clubroom to help you?”

“No, I think I can-”

A loud noise was the heard over the line.

“-really use your help.”

“Hey Maho-chan, what was that noise?”

“What noise?”

“There was this loud noise when you were talking earlier.”

“Must be the signal on your end. Anyway, I really need your help on the clubroom.”

“OK fine. If you really insist.”

I would feel bad on not helping her. I decided to immediately go to the clubroom on Maho-chan’s insistence but the noise I heard in the P.E office still rang on my mind.

* * *

As I lay down on my bed, I recall the events that happened this day. That weird cat, the noise inside the P.E office and that phone call with Maho-chan. 

This day was peculiar one indeed.

Just what the hell is going on?


	6. Attempt

4/15

So, I was nearly late today.

I don’t know how it happened really. I must have a pretty good sleep.

I was running to the school grounds, hoping to make it before the bell. In my rush, I accidentally bumped into someone.

To my surprise, that someone was Suzui-san. 

“Oh Suzui-san! I’m sorry I didn’t notice you.” I said, attempting to apologize to her while trying to ignore the pain on my foot.

To my surprise, she glanced at me, got up and ran to the school.

“Wait, Suzui-san!” I shouted as I attempted to get up. The sprain at my left foot made getting up difficult. Seeing as Suzui-san already ran a distance, I decided not to catch up to her and took care of my sprained ankle.

* * *

After a quick visit to the clinic, I limped my way to the classroom. Thankfully, the class was just beginning when I got to my seat.

The class went as usual until one of my classmates who was closest to the window by the door shouted, “Hey! Someone’s up there by the rooftop!”

All of us looked outside where my classmate was pointing at. Much to surprise, we saw a female student at the edge of the rooftop. 

Wait, I recognized that student…

Oh my god, is she…?

Every student decided to go outside to witness what’s happening. It was chaos everywhere with all the noises from both student and teachers. 

And then, the worst happened.

“Shiho!”

A female voice rang among the chaos. I turned around and saw a female student with platinum blond hair in twintails pass us. It wasn’t long that some of the students went to the courtyard. With curiosity, I decided to go to the courtyard as well.

* * *

“Class is still in session!”

After much struggle, I managed to make it to the courtyard. It’s even more chaotic down here with the students talking to one another and teachers trying to block them from the scene. I also noticed some of the students taking pictures with their smartphones.

What the hell is wrong with these people? 

“We need someone to go with her.. Are there any teachers around?” a male voice spoke. Must be the paramedics.

“I-I’m not in charge of her class though…” One of the teachers replied.

“We should leave this to Principal Kobayakawa…” A fellow teacher replied.

And then a familiar voice said to the paramedic.

“I’ll go!”

“Please hurry!”

From what I can see, the platinum blond haired student I saw running earlier ran to Suzui-san on the stretcher. I can’t hear their conversation but I can tell from the look on blondie’s expression that she is on the verge of tears. 

Suzui-san was then taken to the ambulance. The twintail blondie went along and then ambulance drove off. It wasn’t long after the ambulance had left that Principal Kobayakawa showed up.

“Teachers, return to your classrooms for the time being! Please do not let any students go home yet!” he instructed.

The teachers immediately guided us to our respective classrooms. As we slowly made our back to the classrooms, I looked back at where the incident happened.

“It’s terrible, isn’t it?” a female voice rang through my ears. I looked to my side to see a female student with fluffy brown hair wearing a pink sweater over her uniform. She seems to be looking at the same place as I am.

“It is.” I answered.

“The poor girl must’ve suffered a lot. I hope she will be alright.”

“Yeah, I hope so too.”

“Kobayashi! Okumura! Get into your classrooms now!” a male voice shouted at us.

“Right away!” the female student replied and she immediately sprinted inside the school.

I followed suit and went to my own classroom. As I was going there, I was reminded about what the teacher said earlier.

That student’s last name was Okumura. Where did I heard it before? Okumura. Okumura…

WAIT! Wasn’t Okumura the last name of the owner of Big Bang Burger? Then that means…

Oh shit.

* * *

The rest of the day went somewhat normal. Teachers tried to held their classes as per the usual. 

Keyword being “tried”. The scene earlier clearly wasn’t erased from everyone’s minds.

And the rumor mill still continues. People all over the school were clearly still talking about it. 

“They’re going to be expelled?!” I exclaimed.

Maho-chan nodded her head and then said, “That’s what the rumors are saying. Apparently, Sakamoto-kun, Mishima-kun and the transfer student were threatening Mr. Kamoshida earlier. He took that as an offense and is planning to report them on the next board meeting.”

“What were they’re threatening him about?”

“No idea. However, considering that this happened not too long after the attempt, I say it was about Suzui-san.”

“You think Mr. Kamoshida had something to do with happened to Suzui-san?”

“It’s a possibility. But you might want to tread lightly with that information especially on what happened earlier. The school apparently wanted to mitigate the spread of it.”

“I know.”

* * *

“I heard what happened at your school earlier.”

“So, the information had finally reached outside of school.”

Amane-san and I had taken a break from the tutor lessons. She has friends who are currently working on Shujin so it’s a possibility that someone told her about it.

“The topic was brought up on our group chat earlier. Don’t worry about it, though. Akasaka-san told us to keep it within our group. He obviously don’t want to be fired.”

“Even so, it won’t be long before the public knows about this.”

“No doubt. That kind of attempt done in a prestigious school as Shujn? That definitely will garner attention. And Principal Kobayakawa don’t want THAT kind of attention.” 

Definitely. I can imagine the Principal scrambling to keep the reputation of Shujin.

Speaking of Shujin…

“Hey Amane-san, have you heard of Mr. Kamoshida?”

“I have. Obviously, I already graduated by the time he became the volleyball team coach. All information I’ve learned are from my friends working there. Why do you ask?”

“It’s just that, have you heard anything….. bad about him?”

“Well, all I heard were praises about him being an Olympic winner and all that. A friend of mine said he is so charismatic that many female students were attracted to him and many male students admired him.”

Oh yeah. I definitely know THOSE students.

“Why did you ask?”

My train of thought was interrupted when Amane-san asked me. Her eyes immediately went wide and said, “Wait, are you accusing him of doing something terrible?”

“Well terrible is a strong word.” I answered. “But I won’t deny in saying that I don’t like him. I know he’s a friendly person and all but I have this bad feeling about him. Yesterday, I felt like he was flirting to me and Maho-chan.”  
“I don’t know. Maybe he was just joking with you. You know, to get comfortable with you.”

“I guess it is possible..”

* * *

Events this morning was brought up over dinner. My young twin siblings are currently at their friend’s house for their homework.

“I hope she would be OK.” Mom said. “She must have kept a lot of struggle to commit such an act.”

“I hope so too.” I said.

“Ruri, if you have any struggles in your life, don’t be afraid to tell me. I am your mom after all. I understand you the best because you are my daughter. So no secrets from me, okay?”

...

“Okay Mom.”

She stood up and then picked up her plate and utensils. “I’m going to go wash my plate and sleep early. I have to be ready for the company trip tomorrow.”

“I understand, Mom.”

“Your younger siblings will be back by tomorrow afternoon. I trust that you can cook the meals for the next few days?”

“Don’t worry Mom. You know I can cook. You taught me after all.”

I spent the rest of the evening going through my homework and notes. I decided to sleep after that. I needed the rest anyway after this crazy day.

One thing is for sure though. Tomorrow ain’t going to be normal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one had many revisions to get it right...


End file.
